VOLLEYBALL

Day one of the Grand View University Tournament saw the HU volleyball team split a pair of matches. After disposing of William Penn, 22-25, 25-17, 27-25, 25-22, the Foresters were swept by Lewis-Clark State, 25-16, 25-13, 25-20, to move to 13-11 on the year.

It is well-documented that Herber’s crew can never be counted out of a match and that proved true again Friday afternoon against WPU. After trading sets with the Statesmen, the Foresters made notorious surges in the next two sets to grind out the W. HU had to overcome seven-point deficits in both sets on the way to polishing off William Penn in four.

These two squads have met three times since 2016 with the Foresters claiming the victory each time.

Paige Eakright swung for 21 kills – the fourth time this season she’s posted 20+ kills. Brandy Michie also posted big numbers for HU by logging a season-high 16 kills and an impressive .481 hitting percentage. Lindsay Ingenito and Tya Bynum added eight and six kills respectively.

In addition to running the offense by handing out 46 assists, Jennings Tacosik served up six of her team’s season-high 14 aces which included closing down the third set with back-to-back aces.

“Our match against William Penn was one of our most fun matches of the season,” said Coach Herber. “I love the way we fought back from a deficit, displayed outstanding vocal energy and played disciplined defense.

“I always pray before matches that we take a step in the right direction through the match we are about to play. Today I think we took two steps in the right direction.”

Up against a talented Lewis-Clark team in the nightcap, Herber and crew would have preferred a different final script as they found themselves on the wrong end of a 3-0 decision. The Foresters were in the red offensively while the Warriors turned in one of their most efficient offensive outings of the year by posting a .318 hitting percentage as a team.

Eakright and Michie combined for 12 of their team’s 22 kills with Tacosik assisting all but three of her team’s kills. The 5-9 setter continued her tear behind the service line by racking up five more aces bringing her total to 11 for the day.

“Lewis-Clark is a great team that pushed the tempo of their offense,” said Herber. “While I was proud of the way we made adjustments in the third set, we didn’t make them soon enough.

“That match challenged us in a way that’s needed as we head into the final portion of our season, and I’m thankful for that.”

The loss snapped Huntington’s four-game win streak. The Foresters are back at it tomorrow to take on John Brown and Oklahoma City before heading back to Indiana.